The coronation of King Charles on Saturday will have a significant contribution from Christian Orthodoxy.
“At the request of His Majesty, in tribute to his later father His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, Greek Orthodox music will also feature in the Service performed by the Byzantine Chant Ensemble,” an announcement said.
According to Orthodox London, the coronation will include:
- Chrism from the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem.
- Anointing screen designed by Orthodox Christian iconographer Aidan Hart.
- Byzantine Ensemble, led by Alexander Lingas, chanting in the ceremony
Orthodox contributions to the coronation of King Charles III this Saturday.
– Chrism from the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem.
– Anointing screen designed by Orthodox Christian iconographer Aidan Hart.
– Byzantine Ensemble, led by Alexander Lingas, chanting in the ceremony pic.twitter.com/CbDhKVIy0f— Orthodox London (@OdoxLDN) May 2, 2023
The coronation is being held at Westminster Abbey on 6 May and the King, who will be crowned along with Camilla, the Queen Consort, will be the 40th reigning monarch crowned there since 1066.
The day of splendour and formality will feature customs dating back more than 1,000 years. Here is how we expect it to unfold.
The formal celebrations will begin with a procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey with viewing areas along the route opening at 06:00 BST.
Thousands will gather at Westminster Abbey and the surrounding streets of central London to take in a display of British pageantry.
Preparations have been a long time coming, following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, at her rural Balmoral home in September.
In the days that followed, he was formally proclaimed Britain’s new monarch and now, after months of painstaking preparation, his coronation is almost upon us.
There’s a lot of speculation floating around about the big day, and some elements are still being organised, but here is what we can expect.
The fabulously over-the-top spectacle will be attended by dignitaries from around the world and watched by billions on May 6.
The coronation is a symbolic coming together of the monarchy, church and state for a religious ritual during which the monarch makes vows to both God and country.
Buckingham Palace has said it “will reflect the monarch’s role today and look towards the future, while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry”.
What time is the King’s Coronation?
The coronation of King Charles III will be held inside Westminster Abbey at 11am (London time) on Saturday, May 6. That is 8pm AEST on Saturday.
The coronation will see King Charles III crowned alongside Camilla, the Queen Consort in a ceremony conducted by Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby.
The core elements of the service are the recognition, oath, anointing, investiture, crowning and homage.
The recognition is when the sovereign stands in the theatre of the abbey and presents to the people.
After taking the coronation oath – which is a vow to rule according to law, exercise justice with mercy, and maintain the Church of England – the monarch is anointed with holy oil by the archbishop.
This moment is considered the most sacred part of the service and wasn’t televised in 1953. It won’t be televised on Saturday either.
The next part is the investiture, when the sovereign is dressed in sacred coronation robes and presented with the symbols of the monarchy: the orb, coronation ring, sceptres and others.
Toward the end of the ceremony, St Edward’s Crown is placed atop the monarch’s head before princes and peers make their way to the sovereign to pay their respects in what is known as homage.
Some historians think elements may be tweaked to reflect contemporary society, but the majority will probably still be present.
King Charles and Queen Camilla will travel to their coronation from Buckingham Palace in the Australian-built Diamond Jubilee State Coach.
The ceremony will begin at 11am (local time) at Westminster Abbey and will be followed by a much larger procession back to the palace ahead of the royal family’s appearance on the balcony.
The procession from the palace, which will be accompanied by the Sovereign’s Escort of the Household Cavalry, will go down the Mall, through Admiralty Arch and along the south side of Trafalgar Square, down Whitehall and round Parliament Square to the Sanctuary of Westminster Abbey.
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